Roseanne didn't quit Twitter for long: She's back, blaming (and unblaming) Ambien and bickering with co-stars
So much for quitting Twitter. Roseanne Barr has continued to post — and offend — after a racist tweet about former Obama aide Valerie Jarrett led to ABC canceling her show, as well as old episodes of the series being pulled from Hulu and Viacom cable channels.
The controversial comedian has been busy in her less than 24 hours of unemployment. She apologized for saying that Jarrett was like “Muslim brotherhood & planet of the apes had a baby,” blamed Ambien for her racist post, backpedaled on the Ambien excuse, claimed she didn’t know that Jarrett was black, retweeted a new attack on Jarrett, and took on co-stars who spoke out against her. Whew!
The apology
After announcing she was “leaving” Twitter and initially apologizing to “Valerie Jarrett and all Americans” on Tuesday after ABC gave her the boot, Barr returned about 12 hours later to say sorry again.
I apologize. I am now leaving Twitter.
— Roseanne Barr (@therealroseanne) May 29, 2018
I apologize to Valerie Jarrett and to all Americans. I am truly sorry for making a bad joke about her politics and her looks. I should have known better. Forgive me-my joke was in bad taste.
— Roseanne Barr (@therealroseanne) May 29, 2018
@ValerieJarrett I want to apologize to you. I am very sorry to have hurt you. I hope you can accept this sincere apology!
— Roseanne Barr (@therealroseanne) May 30, 2018
She then reshared a non-Twitter apology.
thanks, Kate! This was written by me. I have nothing more to say.
— Roseanne Barr (@therealroseanne) May 30, 2018
And then apologized to Jarrett, who has called this whole thing a “teaching moment,” again.
@ValerieJarrett i don't know if u saw it, but I wanted2 apologize to u 4 hurting and upsetting u with an insensitive & tasteless tweet. I am truly sorry-my whole life has been about fighting racism. I made a terrible mistake wh caused hundreds of ppl 2 lose their jobs. so sorry!
— Roseanne Barr (@therealroseanne) May 30, 2018
The excuses
Instead of just leaving it there and, ya know, taking some time away from social media to tend to her macadamia nuts, Barr then offered up a series of excuses. In a now-deleted tweet, she wrote, “guys I did something unforgiveable so do not defend me. It was 2 in the morning and I was ambien tweeting-it was memorial day too-i went 2 far & do not want it defended-it was egregious Indefensible. I made a mistake I wish I hadn’t but…don’t defend it please. Ty.”
But then she claimed she didn’t realize that Jarrett was black.
no i didnt.
— Roseanne Barr (@therealroseanne) May 30, 2018
She wrote that she “mistakenly thought” Jarrett was “white.”
yes, I mistakenly thought she was white
— Roseanne Barr (@therealroseanne) May 30, 2018
And “Jewish and Persian”…
i honestly thought she was Jewish and Persian-ignorant of me for sure, but…i did.
— Roseanne Barr (@therealroseanne) May 30, 2018
And “Saudi.”
i thought she was saudi
— Roseanne Barr (@therealroseanne) May 30, 2018
She also backpedaled from the sleeping pill comment, saying she had never blamed Ambien for the offensive tweet.
i blamed myself. not ambien, stop lying
— Roseanne Barr (@therealroseanne) May 30, 2018
no, i didnt i blamed myself. stop lying. Yes, I have had odd ambien experiences on tweeting late at night-like many other ppl do. I BLAME MYSELF OK? it's just an explanation not an excuse, Ok, bully?
— Roseanne Barr (@therealroseanne) May 30, 2018
The Ambien mention led the manufacturer to weigh in, saying in part, “Racism is not a known side effect of any Sanofi medication.”
And while Barr asked fans not to defend her mistake, she retweeted tons of people who did.
Barr’s new attacks
Among Barr’s retweets were attacks on TV personalities Keith Olbermann, Bill Maher, and Trevor Noah, as well as an incorrect meme about Jarrett. She later deleted that retweet and acknowledged it as fake.
they say its fake
— Roseanne Barr (@therealroseanne) May 30, 2018
Drama with her Roseanne co-stars
Barr’s TV son Michael Fishman shared a long post about how he was “devastated” by her comments. She shot back a harsh reply.
i created the platform for that inclusivity and you know https://t.co/hViHPX2ZUb. You throw me under the bus. nice!
— Roseanne Barr (@therealroseanne) May 30, 2018
He replied — and so did she.
Please leave me alone, thanks.
— Roseanne Barr (@therealroseanne) May 30, 2018
Roseanne went slightly easier on Sara Gilbert, saying that she was “shocked” by Gilbert’s tweet against her but forgives her.
Wow! unreal.
— Roseanne Barr (@therealroseanne) May 30, 2018
no, I understand her position and why she said what she said. i forgive her. It just shocked me a bit, but I indeed fucked up.
— Roseanne Barr (@therealroseanne) May 30, 2018
She's distancing herself from me and my tweet-she has to.
— Roseanne Barr (@therealroseanne) May 30, 2018
And she blamed Wanda Sykes, who was first to quit the show after Barr’s tweet, for being the one who got her axed.
her tweet made ABC very nervous and they cancelled the show.
— Roseanne Barr (@therealroseanne) May 30, 2018
She also retweeted a “racist” joke Sykes made in 2017 that “White people don’t steal wallets. They steal countries.”
Emma Kenney, a new cast member on the reboot, also spoke out against Barr.
As I called my manager to quit working on Roseanne, I was told it was cancelled. I feel so empowered by @iamwandasykes , Channing Dungey and anyone at ABC standing up for morals and abuse of power. Bullies will NEVER win.
— Emma Kenney (@EmmaRoseKenney) May 29, 2018
I am hurt, embarrassed, and disappointed. The racist and distasteful comments from Roseanne are inexcusable.
— Emma Kenney (@EmmaRoseKenney) May 29, 2018
Drama with ABC
Barr retweeted a post saying that ABC Entertainment head Channing Dungey, who pulled the plug on Roseanne, “tolerates misbehavior, vulgarity, profanity, threats of murder to our POTUS, and Weinstein behavior, amongst her employees, but if you are a conservative and misbehave, well dammit you’re fired!”
Meet #ChanningDungey
She tolerates misbehavior, vulgarity, profanity, threats of murder to our POTUS, and Weinstein behavior, amongst her employees, but if you are a conservative and misbehave,
well dammit you’re fired! #RosanneBarr #1A pic.twitter.com/xdL4ytoKS9— Carrie America is Tommy Robinson (@carrieksada_) May 29, 2018
When someone questioned her about it, she wrote that she has “been punished enough and have my own story to tell.”
cuz i've been punished enough and have my own story to tell
— Roseanne Barr (@therealroseanne) May 30, 2018
She inquired whether fake news going around — that Dungey called Michelle Obama to discuss Barr’s Jarrett comment — was true.
is this true?
— Roseanne Barr (@therealroseanne) May 30, 2018
Future of Roseanne
Barr also hinted about the future of her show. There has been a lot of talk of the show moving to another network — maybe Fox — and she shut that down.
no, but thanks for your support!
— Roseanne Barr (@therealroseanne) May 30, 2018
She said that she probably would have quit Roseanne anyway if ABC had tried to censor her scripts.
i think i know what really happened. It has made me mad, but as I told u-i would leave when they started to try to censor me, so it all worked out
— Roseanne Barr (@therealroseanne) May 30, 2018
Tweeting the prez
President Trump is a fan of Barr’s show, congratulating her when her early ratings were a hit. She pulled him into the drama by @ messaging him, saying that she could relate to him because what she has gone through in the last 24 hours, he goes through each day.
i feel bad for @POTUS-he goes thru this every single day.
— Roseanne Barr (@therealroseanne) May 30, 2018
Her tweet got him going. Soon after, Trump tweeted about Bob Iger, the head of ABC’s parent company, Walt Disney Company.
Bob Iger of ABC called Valerie Jarrett to let her know that “ABC does not tolerate comments like those” made by Roseanne Barr. Gee, he never called President Donald J. Trump to apologize for the HORRIBLE statements made and said about me on ABC. Maybe I just didn’t get the call?
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) May 30, 2018
So what’s next for Barr? Well, in addition to more tweeting, we assume, she also wrote that she will be a guest Friday on comedian Joe Rogan’s The Joe Rogan Experience podcast. And she’s apparently ready to fight. Roseanne said on Wednesday afternoon that she’s exploring her options — presumably legal ones.
I'm not a racist, I never was & I never will be. One stupid joke in a lifetime of fighting 4 civil rights 4 all minorities, against networks, studios, at the expense of my nervous system/family/wealth will NEVER b taken from me.
— Roseanne Barr (@therealroseanne) May 30, 2018
you guys make me feel like fighting back. I will examine all of my options carefully and get back to U.
— Roseanne Barr (@therealroseanne) May 30, 2018
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